The former Chicago Blackhawks coach, who left to publicly answer all the tough questions about former coach Brad Aldrich’s disgraceful handling of a 2010 video of sexual assault on candidate Kyle Beach, was fired in November when what was left of the administration arose from concealment. after the team’s 1-9-2 start. Colliton’s first day on the new job was Monday, when the Vancouver Canucks’ summer development camp opened at the University of BC On July 1, general manager Patrick Alvin, who had talked with Colliton for months, named the 37-year-old Canucks coach to Abbotsford. “I feel good going forward and I’m excited about this opportunity,” Colliton said after Day 1. “But you’ve got to take (getting fired) personally, right? Taking a step back, like, it was tough (in Chicago). It was a difficult situation. There were many challenges every year, from day one to the end. It was a lot. “But in saying that, I feel like I’ve grown a lot from going through it. You grow much more from adversity than when things go smoothly. And we’ve had a lot of them, so I feel like I’m pretty prepared for the next one.” The former Prince Albert Raiders star, who spent most of his eight professional seasons playing for the New York Islanders farm team, coached for just over a year in the American League before the Blackhawks quickly moved him to the NHL in 2018. to take over from Joel Quenneville. He was an NHL coach at age 33 — younger than some of the aging team players he inherited. Colliton said there were other coaching opportunities he could have pursued, but chose to return to the AHL with the Canucks. “I was willing to wait and just spend time with my family,” he said. “I wanted to make sure it was the right thing. It wasn’t so much the position as the people and the feeling that they really believed in me, and I believe I can make an impact here. Talking to Patrik, in particular, about his long-term vision for the Canucks was really interesting. It felt like a good fit.” It should fit better, at least.
TWO POINTS OH THANKS
Canucks new draft pick Elias Pettersson, they call him 2.0 because the original Elias Pettersson is already playing in Vancouver, he wants the English pronunciation of his first name to be used in North America. So it’s Ely-us, not Illy-us, that will help keep everyone from getting confused if the Petterssons end up with the same line-up. “My friends call me EP,” he said. Yeah, that probably won’t work with the Canucks. But there’s no doubt that the Petterssons are players. The youngster, who looks bigger than his draft listing at six-foot-two and 185 pounds, is a physical defenseman who still skates well and can handle the puck. Just 18 years old and three days removed from being selected No. 80, Peterson’s competitiveness was palpable among the 37 players in development camp. “I try to be tough and play hard out there,” he explained. “I think that’s one of my strengths in the game as well. “Last year, I was playing in the SHL with the big guys. My coach told me to be tough out there. I learned so much last year. . . to stand up for myself and be tough out there.” Pettersson is under contract with Orebro of the Swedish Hockey League for the next two seasons and has an option to move to North America for the 2024-25 campaign. He said he hasn’t spoken to the other Elias, also known as Petey, but responded to the Canucks star’s social media meme of two Spidermen facing off. “I’ve seen it so much,” 2.0 explained. “I said thank you. It was fun.”
BOBBY HE? WHO IS THIS?
Top draft pick Jonathan Lekkerimaki, the scoring winger who was selected 15th overall on Thursday night, found his first Canucks jersey with No. 4 on it. He made no reply when the name Bobby Orr was mentioned to him by a reporter. Lekkerimaki wears No. 88 for Djurgardens in Sweden, where he will return under contract next season, despite the Vancouver Giants claiming his junior rights in the Canadian Hockey League’s entry draft. His coaches at the camp include Swedish legends and newly elected Hockey Hall-of-Famers Daniel and Henrik Sedin, whom Lekkerimaki met on Sunday. “Special,” he said. “Very special.”
STAND OUT
The Swede who stood out the most on the opening day of development camp was forward Linus Karlsson, understandably so. Many of the prospects in Vancouver, including 13 undrafted invitees, are looking to begin their journeys in professional hockey. Karlsson, 22, has spent the last four seasons in professional hockey and was named SHL rookie of the year last year after scoring an impressive 26 goals and 46 points in 52 games for Skelleftea. A 2018 third-round pick of the San Jose Sharks, Karlsson was traded to the Canucks in 2019 in exchange for Jonathan Dahlen. Karlsson is much stronger and faster now, according to Canucks staff, and the team signed him in May to a two-way NHL contract that will likely have the winger playing in Abbotsford next season. “It wasn’t easy at all,” Karlsson told reporters, showing maturity both off and on the ice. “I played in Sweden’s second division for about three years. My last year was in the highest league. So it was a hard way, but I’m proud of that way. I still have a little way to go. I want to play in the NHL. I want to work on the same things. . . and try to make everything better.” No one is suggesting that Karlsson will turn out to be the best NHLer out of this lineup of prospects, but he may be the closest to playing in Vancouver.
